Along with increased "burn," clean looks at the basket and endorsement deals, it's what helps keep NBA players motivated throughout their generously remunerated grinds.
It maintains the premise of late-season competitive balance by inspiring good teams — those that have avoided knuckle-headed drafting and rotting contracts — to continue playing well.
And it provides franchises with additional revenue streams from parking, concessions and the sale of reasonably priced tickets.
I'm referring, of course, to home-court advantage, a variable that certainly seems important during the NBA playoffs.
Just in case you didn't notice, while falling short of certifying victory before it occurs, home-court advantage really comes in handy ... especially in the opening round. Over the past 10 seasons, higher-seeded home teams have seized their advantages of location (and talent) to win at an 81-percent clip in Round 1.
But after only one semi-sweet weekend, observers of the league's 2009 postseason hayride witnessed half of the NBA's home teams already surrendering this perk.
One quick look establishes injury as a crucial component in first-game losses by the San Antonio Spurs, Portland Trail Blazers, Orlando Magic and defending-champion Boston Celtics.
In similar predicaments, Perkins is a relative slouch.
Yeah, yeah ... the Cs would have won if Pierce had made one more free throw or if Ray Allen's yips had resulted in 2 of 12 rather than 1 of 12 from the field.
But that didn't happen.
Will these absences create insurmountable crises for the teams affected? Probably not. They should be lingering factors, but other variables are at work.
In the Western Conference, the dreaded "P" word (parity) means the only surprising outcome would be the vanquishing of the Los Angeles Lakers.
In the Eastern Conference, Orlando's potential also has been mitigated by the loss of Jameer Nelson, while the 3-8 seeds — though still shaky — seem more equipped for good basketball than they were a year ago.
What about the importance of home court?
Well, home teams were 64-22 through all rounds last season, a stat that represents the biggest home swing in 18 years.
But that doesn't mean that the same teams that snaked home-court advantage last weekend are incapable of returning the favor.
